Literature Review of Horizontal Collaboration in the Maritime Industry

Master's Thesis from the year 2012 in the subject Business economics - Supply Production Logistics grade: A Heriot-Watt University Edinburgh course: Maritime Logistics and Supply Chain Management language: English abstract: This literature review investigates horizontal collaboration initiatives of ports andterminals. It includes the identification of concepts drivers benefits and barriers.Moreover it examines how collaboration initiatives can be managed effectively.The study shows that ports and terminals collaborate in the field of marketing andbusiness development operations administrative regulatory and spin-off.Organizations are forced to collaborate by following drivers: Bargaining power ofshipping lines increased efficiency in sea-transport and hinterland-connections aswell as increased requirements of shippers and shipping lines.The benefits of collaborating can be classified in the sections efficiency / costreduction knowledge and competency positioning of the company as well asmarketing and service benefits. Social benefits and green benefits have also beendiscovered.The main barriers are anti-competition regulations and discrepancies betweenpartners strategic fit and different interests.The top three factors of effective collaboration management are regular face to facemeetings integration of information and trust.All in all this literature review makes several contributions to the rarely availableliterature of horizontal collaboration in the maritime port and terminal industry.